10 Greatest Album Intros In Rock History
2. Baba O'Riley - The Who
The Who were in a bit of a tough spot at the end of the '60s. After reinventing rock and roll with volume on My Generation, all of Pete Townshend's musical ambitions went through the ceiling with the release of Tommy, which became known as the blueprint for what would become the rock opera. Even though it would be murder to follow that up, Baba O'Riley lets you know that the excitement had only just begun.
On the surface, most of Who's Next was just made up of the bits and pieces that came from Townshend's aborted opera Lifehouse. However, this track was a sign that the next iteration of these once-Mod rockers was going to be something special, with the synthesizer being the lead instrument in the mix. As a barrage of notes dances around the opening, the entire band comes in naturally before Townshend's guitar cuts through the mix.
It's also interesting to hear the fragments of what Lifehouse was going to be, as Roger Daltrey's commanding vocal presence talks about venturing to new lands to find the meaning of life through music. Though the Lifehouse project never saw the light of day, the power of this track alone would have sold anyone on the musical utopia awaiting just over the horizon. Tommy may be the more adventurous project, but this is the kind of dramatic overture that that rock opera had prepared us for.